Ladder construction



Sept. 1, 1959 Filed May 7, 1958 A. 4 E'ICKHOLDT 2,902,1 10

LADDER CONSTRUCTION 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 38 v E J INVENTOR.

IAWRENCE A. EICKHOLDT mw m ATTORNEYS Sept. 1, 1959 L. A. EICKHOLDTLADDER CONSTRUCTION 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed May 7. 1958 INVENTOR.

LAWRENCE A. EICKHOLDT Y ATTORNEYS LADDER CONSTRUCTION 'Lawrence A."l'lickholdt, Inkster, Mich, assignor of fifty percent to Homer C.Wixson, Livonia, Mich. Application -May 7, 1958, Serial No. 733,641Claims. (Cl. 182-13) sisting of two ladder sections which'are slidablyjoined together so that the upper ladder section may be raised 'orlowered relative to'the other section, to thereby adjust the overallheight of the ladder. Where such a ladder is used along a wall or thelike, the user must constantly climb down the ladder, pick it up, andmove it from one spot to another along the' wall.

Thus, it is an object-of this invention to form a two sec- 'tionextensible ladder, 'wherein the ladder may be moved sideways along theside of the wall against which the ladder is rested, 'and wherein themovement may be actuated and controlled by a person who is located atthe very top of the ladder. p

A further object of this invention is to provide a track system whereinthe ladder is supported upon a track which track tilts and .holds theladder tilted against a vertical surface. 7 r p Yet a further objeet ofthis invention is to provide an r mr dv 41 115. vv o movin nd ee s t mments-of. azladder in a direction transverse tofthe-iladder, which meansis operable at all times regardless of the relative position of the t'woladdersect ions' of which the ladder ii s cbn rposed... 1-

Still a further object of this invention is to provide a wheeledcarriage for supporting a ladder and for moving the ladder transversely.

These and other objects and advantages will become apparent upon readingthe following description of which the attached drawings form a part.

With reference to the attached drawings, in which:

Fig. l is a perspective view of the ladder construction hereof.

Fig. 2 is an enlarged view, taken in the direction of arrow 2 of Fig. 3,showing the rear elevation view of the ladder.

Fig. 3 is a perspective view of the carriage, per se.

Fig. 4 is an enlarged fragmentary side view taken in the direction ofarrow 4 of Fig. 1.

Fig. 5 and Fig. 6 show the sprockets for moving the ladder and are takenin the direction of arrow 5 and arrows 66 of Fig. 2, but as if lookingdown from the front of the ladder.

Fig. 7 and Fig. 8 show fragments of the top of the leg of the lowerladder section and the bottom of the leg of the upper ladder section andtheir sprocket supporting brackets, respectively.

With reference to the drawings, the construction consists generally of aladder 10, a support carriage 11 for the ladder, tracks 12 upon whichthe support carriage may ride, and a control and operating means 13.Each of these elements will be separately described.

The ladder consists of a lower ladder section 15 and United StatesPatent 0 "ice hold the two ladder sections in face to face contact andpermits the upper ladder 16 to be adjusted relative to the lower ladder15 for extending and adjusting the height of the ladder. This type ofconstruction, including the brackets 17 for interconnecting and holdingthe two ladder sections are conventional, and thus, no furtherdescription; will be given for these parts since they, per se, form nopart of this invention.

As illustrated in Fig. 3, the-carriage consists of a backing strip 20upon which a pair of sockets 21 'are permanently secured. The-socketsare mounted on the backing s'trip by means of sleeves 21a, and thusrotate relative to theaxis of the backing strip. The two legs-of thelower ladder 15 are removably fitted into the sockets 2'1 and held inplace by pins 2Tb (see Fig. 2) so that the ladders are removably mountedupon the carriage. Suspended below-the backing strip 20 are a pair ofaxles '22 and 23 upon which wheels 24 are mounted. The axle 22 rotateswith the wheels 24 and is rotatably supported 'by means of the braces25. The axle '23 is likewise supported by braces 26.

As shown in Figs. '1 and 4, the track 12 consists of an inside rail 30and an outside rail 31 connected by cross strips 32. The inside rail isconsiderably lower in height than the outside rail 31 so that when thecarriage wheels 24 ride upon the rails, the carriage is tilted at anangle to the vertical and the ladder, which is mounted in thesockets-'21, is likewis'e til-t'ed at angle to the vertical.

At the top of the ladder a pair of rollers 33 are mounted. These rollersrotate in a direction transverse to the plane -of the ladder, so thatthe ladder can move sideways withth'e rollers 33 bearing againstasupportwall 54 and rolling along the wall.

In order to move the ladder sideways, -e.g. parallel to the supportwall, means consisting of four sprockets interconnected by an endlesschain is provided. The top sprocket 35 is connected to theitop of oneleg of the upper ladder 16 by means of a bracket 35a connected to saidleg. A SCOTld sprocket 36 is connected by bracket 36a to the :other legbut at the bottom thereof- A third sprocket T37 .is oarriedzbybracket3711*01141161019013 the leg of *the lower section 1*5v :be'n'eathsprocket 36. The tourth sprocket .38

is mounted upon axle 22 for rotation therewith so that rotation of thesprocket 38 rotates the axle 22 and the wheel 24.

A chain 39 interconnects the four sprockets by passing over the top ofthe sprocket 35 around the outside of the sprocket 36 over the top ofthe sprocket 37 and around the sprocket 38. A handle 40 is connected tothe upper sprocket 35 so that the handle may be manually rotated torotate sprocket 35, to move the chain and thereby cause rotation of thesprocket 38 and the wheels 24.

To adjust the chain tension, sprocket brackets 36a and 37a are movablymounted on their respective ladder sections, as follows:

The top ofleg 15a of the lower ladder section 15 and the bottom of theleg 16a of the upper ladder section 16, are indented with channels 44.Lugs 46, formed on the brackets, fit within the indentations 44 and apin 47 may be removably secured in one of a number of openings 48 in theladder legs.

Note that bracket 36a is similar to bracket 37a, with the exception thatbracket 36a is provided with an extension 52 arranged to pass around theleg of the lower ladder section 15, whereby the sprockets 35, 36, and 37are all positioned in the same plane.

In operation, the two ladder portions are arranged with the legs of thelower ladder portions in the sockets of the carriage and with thecarriage upon the track 12. The track 12 may be permanently mounted neara wall where the ladder is frequently used or may be formed in a numberof sections and assembled in front of any wall.

The ladder is adjusted to the desired height and, because of the tilt ofthe carriage due to the different height rails, the ladder leans againstthe wall with the chain 39 being substantially in one plane. The workerusing the ladder may then move the ladder in a direction parallel to thewall, as he desires, by simply turning the crank 40.

This invention may be further developed within the scope of thefollowing attached claims.

Accordingly, this description should be read as being merelyillustrative of an operative embodiment of this invention and not in astrictly limiting sense.

I claim:

1. A ladder construction comprising a lower base ladder and an upperladder, both arranged in face to face relationship with the upper ladderbeing carried by and being extensible from the lower ladder; means formoving the ladders in a sidewise direction, said means comprising awheeled carriage upon which the lower ladder is mounted, the wheels ofthe carriage being mounted upon axles, at least one of the axles beingrotatably mounted upon the carriage with the wheels mounted upon saidone axle being fixed thereto and the axles being arranged approximatelynormal to the plane of the ladders, and also comprising a chain andsprocket type mover in the form of a pair of sprockets rotatably mountedon the upper ladder, one at the top of one leg and the other at thebottom of the other leg thereof, and a sprocket rotatably mounted on theleg of the upper end of the lower ladder corresponding to said one legof the upper ladder, all three sprockets being on the same face of theladder, and a fourth sprocket fixed to said one of the wheel axles, thesprockets being interconnected by an endless chain which runs over thetop sprocket of the upper ladder, then under the upper ladder bottomsprocket, then over the top of the lower ladder sprocket, and finallyunder the wheel axle sprocket, and handle means connected with the topsprocket of the upper ladder for rotating the sprocket and therebyrotating the wheel axle to thus rotate the carriage wheels and move theladders.

2. A construction as defined in claim 1 and said carriage comprising twospaced axles and a transverse backing, each axle carrying a pair ofWheels, the axles being connected to said transverse backing, saidbacking having attached sockets for removably receiving the legs of thelower ladder.

3. A construction as defined in claim 2 and including a double railtrack upon which the wheels ride, with one rail being higher than theother, thereby tilting the carriage and the ladder at an angle to thevertical,

4. A construction as defined in claim 1 and wherein the bottom sprocketof the upper ladder is carried by a bracket which is movably connectedto said other leg of the upper ladder and the sprocket of the lowerladder is likewise carried by a bracket which is movably connected tothe lower ladder and which positions. its sprocket in the same plane assaid bottom sprocket, the brackets including means allowing for theiradjustment along the length of their respective ladders for adjustingthe tension of the chain.

5. A ladder construction comprising a lower ladder and an upper ladderarranged in face to face contact with and forwardly of the lower ladder,and secured thereto for movement relative thereto for adjusting thecombined length of the two ladders, means for moving the ladderstransversely, said means comprising a carriage and an operator, thecarriage consisting of a plurality of wheels mounted upon axlesrotatably connected to the legs of the lower ladder, and the operatorconsisting of four sprockets: a top and bottom sprocket rotatablymounted at the top and bottom of the upper ladder on opposite legsthereof and on one face thereof, and a sprocket connected to the top ofthe leg of the lower ladder corresponding to the upper ladder topsprocket leg, and positioned in the plane of the afore mentionedsprockets, and a sprocket fixed to one of said axles; an endless chaininterconnecting the sprockets as follows: first, around the upper laddertop sprocket and then around the bottom sprocket, then over the top ofthe lower ladder sprocket and finally around the axle sprocket, andmanual crank means for rotating the top sprocket to thereby rotate theaxle sprocket and move the wheels and ladder.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS1,142,806 Fenton June 15, 1915 1,969,628 Skeenes Aug. 7, 1934 FOREIGNPATENTS 537,641 Germany Nov. 6, 1931

